Frieze Art Fair, Cildo Meireles and other stories !!

Cildo Meireles

Lin Tianmiao - Mother

Back from Colombia, having decided to actually spend most of the year there, I'm working on a new big project! I won't tell until is done so you can expect a surprise!
I'm very pleased to know that I will be able to taste my culture again. Will be around in Italy for 3 or 4 months of the year, will curate only the International Projects for the Florence Biennale as well as the Biennale series of catalogues for artists.
I will be head of the international committee for another project in Sardinia, meaning I will be back in Colombia but still keeping strong my contacts here in Europe!.

I've been traveling around and most recently I have been in London for the Frieze Art Fair which I enjoyed very much, as usual a lot of good work and other pieces that I didn't appreciate much, certainly I have to say the sculpture park was not my favorite!.

I specially liked Lin Tianmiao's artwork, always so powerfull and delicate at the same time, that I must say makes me hold my breath!. The series of drawings by Kiki Smith were also very nice, not to mention the beautiful small heads!

A standing ovation for the gallery Arndt & Partner for their well curated space, all the work was very nice, even the Tattoed pig by Wim Delvoye; they had two pieces by Nedko Solakov and beautiful almost invisible drawings by an artist I'm still finding out the name!!, Juana de Aizpuru Gallery had also a that had an early piece by Joseph Kosuth that is still very powerful.

But the best of London I must say was the show of Cildo Meireles at the Tate Modern, specially two of his installations were superb.
The first piece called Missão/Missões (How to Build Cathedrals), featuring a floor of pennies and a ceiling of cow bones, the installation suggests that the conquest of the Americas was as much about economics as it was about religion or saving souls. I started walking int the coins an felt incredibly weird, like money makes you fall, it was forbidden so by the time everyone followed me into the coin floor the security came!!! (i didn't know it was forbidden, it felt natural walking on top of it)
The second installation is a piece you can intervene with, you must take out your shoes and socks and get into a dark room, only lightened at the end by a candle, the sensation of putting your feet into white talc (seems wet but is not) makes you feel like you were walking on the moon, it activates all the pleasure sensors in your brain while walking to get to the only warm and light point: a lonely silent candle.

London was expensive, specially considering I lost my flight and had to buy a new one and stay ina five star hotel for one night but it was fun, I shared very nice time with old friends and made new ones as well.

Soon I'll be traveling to China, will let you know all!!